Grammy Museum Mississippi will soon welcome legendary songwriter David Porter to the museum in Cleveland for a night of open conversation with those in attendance.
“An Evening with David Porter” will take place Thursday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. in the Sanders Soundstage. A reception with food and drink will take place before the event at 6 p.m. Tickets went on sale Tuesday morning.
Porter is a 2005 inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, with catalog sales exceeding 400 million units. Rolling Stone listed him as one of its “100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time” as the Memphis, Tenn., native has written tunes for James Brown, Celine Dion, Notorious B.I.G., Drake, Eminem, Aretha Franklin, Bonnie Raitt, Otis Redding, and ZZ Top, among others.
Some of Porter’s most notable work includes being the pen behind Grammy-winning songs “Soul Man” by Sam & Dave, “Dreamlover” by Mariah Carey, and “Gettin’ Jiggy wit It” by Will Smith. Porter was the first staff songwriter at Stax Records and later began recording his own albums for the label.
“We are thrilled to welcome one of the most esteemed and accomplished songwriters of our generation, David Porter, to our museum for a special evening of conversation,” Grammy Museum Mississippi executive director Emily Havens said.
“From his longtime association with the legendary Stax Records to the songs he’s written and composed for many award-winning artists, Davis has made such an immeasurable impact on American music,” she continued. “We look forward to having him here to share the many highlights of his prolific career.”
The conversation with Porter will be moderated by Gebre Waddell. Waddell is an entrepreneur, author, and audio engineer who co-founded Sound Credit, a pioneering technology platform for the music industry. He also serves as secretary and treasurer of the Board of Trustees of the Recording Academy.
Tickets to “An Evening with David Porter” are $20 for Grammy Museum Mississippi members and $25 for non-members.